a.) Greenfly
1.) Method of transportation and distance required play important roles when it come to controlling the environmental impact. These factors must not be treated lightly as it has the capability to waste a lot of energy. For example, size of a container and the stored product should be calculated to know how much the percentage of the space efficiency is.
2.) End-of-life destination and lifespan of components will determine how long a product can last during and without usage. Each stage is important and must be well research before designing a sustainable product.
3.) It is important to use materials that can be recycled or reused easily to reduce solid waste as it can compromise the energy waste lost from transportation and manufacturing.
Conclusion:
There are in fact a lot of factors that could contribute towards the environment, wastage of materials and energy. It is important to research on the lifecycle stages of a product such as manufacture, transport, use and end of life. All these should be properly researched and tested in order to create a sustainable design. It would be interesting if Greenfly can be incorporated with Solidworks to automatically calculate the component weightings, energy demand, water use, solid waste and others.
b.) Autodesk: Whole Systems and Lifecycle Thinking
1.) Define the problem by looking at the whole system. The main culprit that affects the life cycle of the product needs to be find out so that the smaller problems caused by the bigger problems would not appear. For example, inefficiency of a particular product arrangement would affect the total weight, time taken and amount of fuel needed for transportation. .
2.) Brainstorm solutions by looking at the whole system. Each stage of the product's usage should be analysed to find out what are the factors that could impact the environment negatively. Then, think of multiple solutions that could solve the problem through analysis and experiments. Pick the best one that could decrease the most amount of wastage.
3.) Always try to repeat the design processes that are taken, By doing that, I can start to look at things at different perspective and solve that particular problem in a more creative way either by implementing theoretical strategies or making real-life improvements.
Conclusion:
A lot of designers would likely to attempt to reducing the amount of material used for reducing cost or using a sustainable material to soften the environmental impact. Obviously, such approach is not good enough. Designers should look at the whole system how the product is made, used and end-of-use through extraction, manufacturing, transportation, usage, recycling and other relevant stages. Each stage cannot be taken lightly and has the ability to affect the environment. A sustainable design is not just about the product itself that is being used but also the process taken to make the product and it's afterlife.
c.) Autodesk: Improving Product Lifetime
1.) Design for durability. It is good to know that how a product could last during usage, storage, or even got broken by accident. It is one of the essential elements of good design as no matter how good looking the design is, if the product does not last due to its poor material choice and weak structure of the product, it will be not beneficial for the user's demand or expectations.
2.) Design for repair and upgrade. Products should be designed in a way that it can be assembled and re-assembled easily by using the correct fasterners that does not harm the environment and the user. With this concept in mind, usefulness of the product can be prolonged if the product can be repaired with ease.
3.) Design for disassembly and recycling. Designers should always think of the material type first in their design whether the positive characteristics of that material can be incorporated effectively and ethically for the product or not. Designers should ask themselves whether the material can be recycled easily without wasting a lot of energy or not.
Conclusion:
These videos are wake up call for all designers to realise that the natural resources will soon be gone if we don't start designing ethical and sustainable products. People are getting more conscious and aware how a product its made for its durability and effectiveness in achieving the designer's main aim at the same time without the green environment in mind. It is up to designers in a way to consider how they should re-approach the whole process of sustainable design and how to make a good use of the current availability of natural resources.
d.) Autodesk: Lightweighting
1.) A good way to design sustainable products is to decrease the unnecessary weight of the product by reducing unneeded section of materials. This can be achieved for example, using lighter materials, using trusses or hollow parts.
2.) However, lightweighting strategy could not work if it affects the environment negatively due to its manufacturing processes or if its not durable enough for longer lasting use.
3.) Compression, tension forces and tensengrity can be used to test the functional aspect and the durability of a particular product. A win-win situation is created if a lighter weight product can produce the same amount of force exerted as a heavier product.
Conclusion:
Using lightweighting principle is a good strategy for designing products as it can help designers to avoid using unnecessary materials or additional weight to create unnecessary force to deliver a particular function. It is also beneficial for transportation, low cost and more portable for consumers. However, one must ensure that the lightweighting will not affect the performance and aesthetics of the product as it might decrease the lifespan or durability of the product. Cost and technology of manufacturing processes that are required should also be well researched and tested if possible.
e.) Autodesk: Green Materials Selection
1.) There are a lot of green materials out there and that particular material should only be used if it abundant, non toxic, does not waste energy and cost during manufacturing process, good physical and chemical properties, meets regulations and good end of life options.
2.) Life cycle impact of the whole system should be considered even though its green. For example, it should not create a lot of waste after usage.
3.) Embodied energy is an important aspect of a material chosen to be manufactured. Recycled materials should be used to cut down the embodied energy, water and solid waste.
Conclusion:
It is encouraged to use green materials if it meets the trusted regulations and the harvesting of the plants is certified and sustainable. It is also important to consider the cost and the level of technology used to manufacture green materials, especially the newly founded ones. A qualified green material should also provide excellent physical properties like other commonly used materials, can be recycled easily and economically. For example, sugarcane bagasse is a form of abundant waste product but very useful in making food containers and tetrapack milk cartons.
f.) Autodesk: Energy Efficient Design
1.) It is important to understand the transformation of energy and the level of energy used in order to be converted into another form of energy. With this understanding, designers can strategise how they can lower down the unnecessary level of a certain energy to generate power or movement more efficiently at a faster rate.
2.) It is good to know how energy levels can be decreased through resistance, vibration, noise, friction and heat during product usage and how the product can regain back its energy levels when it is at its resting stage. When the product is used for a second time, can it perform as efficient as before?
3.) Amount of energy used should be known during extraction of materials and during manufacturing processes. Mining, transport, conversion, electrical transmission efficiency and power consumption used by the product should be researched on and analysed properly to make sure that its consistent and wastage is at its minimum level. The whole system of energy efficiency needs to be looked at.
Conclusion:
Looking at the current products in the market, there are not many electrical products out there are sustainable and has the energy efficient design. Dyson is a good role model for all product companies as their hand driers and vacuum cleaners are energy efficient yet functional products. Engineers and designers should work together to think of how to reduce power consumption and conserve energy during operation of product and when it is not in use. Product companies should also encourage and advise their consumers how to practice a good habit to save and conserve energy while using their products. Solid and energy waste (heat transfer & fluid flow) could be used to convert into a more useful energy for other purposes in the future.
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